COMMUNITY • CONNECTION • ACTION

Our Community in Action

Celebrating moments of learning, connection, healing, courage, and collective strength.

LET’S TALK NOT HIDE GALLERY

Learning, Sharing and Growing Together

Explore activities delivered by Afghan Women's Organization Refugee and Immigrant Services (AWO): workshops, outreach, community conversations, healing circles, awareness events and partnerships.

Community Moments

Educational workshops
Community outreach
Healing and dialogue circles
Awareness events
Partnership activities

Photo Highlights

Browse highlights from each activity. Select “View more” to see the remaining photos in that group.

View featured youth visit — Aga Khan Museum

FEATURED YOUTH VISIT

Aga Khan Museum Youth Group Visit

On Wednesday, August 19, 2026, the Let’s Talk Not Hide youth group visited the Aga Khan Museum. With the valued collaboration of the Aga Khan Museum administration and visitor guides, youth explored art, history and culture while building curiosity, confidence and community connection.

A celebration of learning, belonging and the power of shared cultural experiences.

Community gatherings and creative activities

Community members displaying artwork created together — **Art Session: Creativity, Confidence and Connection**
May 15, 2026 · 540 Unison Hub
Creating art together builds confidence and community connection.

View more — Community gatherings and creative activities (9 photos)

Collage of AWO community members sharing awareness messages and participating in a group session — **Community Voices and Awareness: GBV Session**
November 25, 2025 · AWO Don Mills office
Learning about gender-based violence through community discussion and awareness activities.

Community members gathering around a shared meal — **Welcoming Community Gathering**
Cedarbrae Centre
A welcoming space for conversation and community connection.

Women celebrating culture and community together — **Celebrating Culture and Community**
June 22, 2026 · 540 Unison Hub, North York
Sharing culture and strengthening community connections.

Women gathering for a community celebration — **Strength Through Community**
North York
Sharing experiences and cultural values to build understanding and connection.

AWO community members gathered together holding flowers — **Women’s Day: Celebrating Women and Community**
March 10, 2026 · AWO Don Mills office
Celebrating women and strengthening community connections.

Collage of women gathered for a community celebration and sharing reflections — **Celebrating Women’s Voices**
Sharing reflections and celebrating women’s voices in a supportive community space.

Older adults connecting during a community gathering — **Building Friendship and Belonging**
Connecting with others through a shared gathering to encourage friendship and reduce isolation.

Community members participating in an intergenerational learning session — **Community Learning Across Generations**
Armenian Centre, Toronto
Sharing information about gender-based violence.

Community members connecting during an outdoor awareness and creative activity — **Outdoor Community Connection and GBV Awareness**
July 2025 · Erindale Park, Mississauga
Deep breathing in nature and brainstorming how to recognize signs of abuse.

Workshops and community education

Community members participating in an educational workshop — **Community Learning and Dialogue**
May 2026 · Afghan Women’s Organization, Don Mills office
Learning together through community education and conversation.

View more — Workshops and community education (5 photos)

Community workshop participants learning together — **Learning Together**
September 2025 · Afghan Women’s Organization, Don Mills office
Taking part in a community workshop to build knowledge and connections.

Participants listening during a community education session — **Community Education in Action**
Listening and learning together during a community education session.

Gender-based violence awareness workshop for ESL and LINC learners — **GBV Workshop for ESL and LINC Learners**In collaboration with Volunteer MBC—Volunteer Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon—Let’s Talk Not Hide delivered a gender-based violence awareness workshop for ESL and LINC learners. Participants learned about forms of abuse, warning signs, rights and available supports, and reviewed our GBV awareness brochure.

Participant reading the Let’s Talk Not Hide gender-based violence awareness brochure — **Learning About GBV Through Accessible Community Resources**
Reading the program’s awareness brochure to learn about gender-based violence and available support.

Outreach and awareness campaigns

Community members supporting an awareness event — **16 Days of Activism Campaign**
November 2025 · Afghan Women’s Organization, Mississauga office
Community outreach to raise awareness of gender-based violence and encourage collective action.

View more — Outreach and awareness campaigns (9 photos)

Purple and orange awareness ribbons for ending violence — **Standing Together Against Violence**
Human Rights and GBV Campaign
November–December 10, 2025 · North York and Scarborough
Using awareness ribbons to show solidarity and encourage conversations about preventing violence.

Community members holding Voices Have Power signs — **Voices Have Power**
Human Rights and GBV Campaign
November–December 10, 2025 · North York and Scarborough
Sharing awareness messages that encourage community members to speak up and support safety.

Community awareness participants holding Break the Cycle signs — **Breaking the Cycle Together**
Raising awareness of violence prevention through shared community messages.

Women participating in awareness and solidarity activities — **Awareness, Solidarity and Support**
Coming together to raise awareness and show support for safer communities.

Community members wearing purple for awareness — **United for Change**
Human Rights and GBV Campaign
November–December 10, 2025 · North York and Scarborough
Wearing purple to raise awareness and express community solidarity.

Participants sharing messages of awareness and hope — **Sharing Knowledge and Building Hope**
Human Rights and GBV Campaign
November–December 10, 2025 · North York and Scarborough
Sharing messages of awareness and hope through community participation.

Community outreach resources and shared learning — **Outreach, Resources and Shared Learning**
Making information and resources available through community outreach.

Afghan Women’s Organization community information table sharing GBV resources — **Community Information Table: Sharing GBV Resources and Support**
Sharing information about gender-based violence and where community members can find support.

Community participants supporting a gender-based violence awareness campaign — **GBV Awareness Campaign: Community Voices for Safety and Change**
Bringing community voices together to promote awareness and prevent gender-based violence.

Skills training and graduation

Sewing and skills activities provide opportunities to practise new skills and build confidence and community connections. These connections support the program’s wider goal of reducing isolation.

Participants celebrating completion of sewing skills training with their certificates — **Sewing Skills Training Series — Graduation**
March 2024 · Afghan Women’s Organization, Mississauga
Celebrating participants in a series of sewing skills training sessions that built skills, confidence and community connections.

View more — Skills training and graduation (1 photo)

Women participating in sewing skills training — **Sewing Skills Training Series**
March 2024 · Afghan Women’s Organization, Mississauga
Learning sewing skills together across a series of sessions.

Museum visits and shared learning

Shared museum visits create opportunities for cultural learning and conversation outside the classroom, supporting the program’s focus on belonging and community connection.

Community group visiting the Aga Khan Museum — **Cultural Discovery Together**
June 2025 · Aga Khan Museum
Exploring art and culture together to strengthen learning, belonging and community connection.

View more — Museum visits and shared learning (3 photos)

Youth and families participating in a museum visit — **Youth and Families Learning Together**
August 19, 2026 · Aga Khan Museum
In collaboration with Cross Culture Organization.
Exploring a museum together through shared cultural learning and conversation.

Families listening to a museum educator — **Exploring Art, History and Culture**
August 19, 2026 · Aga Khan Museum
In collaboration with Cross Culture Organization.
Listening to a museum educator and discovering art, history and culture together.

Community participants travelling and learning together — **Connection Beyond the Classroom**
July 2025 · Mississauga
Travelling and learning together to build community connection beyond the classroom.

Online learning sessions

Online gender-based violence awareness session with participant names blurred for privacy — **Online Session: Family Violence, Healthy Relationships and Boundaries**
December 2025 · Online
Learning about family violence, healthy relationships and setting respectful boundaries.

View more — Online learning sessions (1 photo)

Online community learning session with participant names blurred for privacy — **Family Violence, Healthy Relationships and Boundaries**
December 2025 · Online
Connecting online to learn about healthy relationships and respectful boundaries.

Participant names in online-session images have been blurred. To raise a concern about an image or request its removal, contact our team.

COMMUNITY VOICES

Summarized Participant Feedback

Summaries of feedback from community members who joined our workshops and conversations. These are not verbatim quotations.

Before attending the workshops, I was afraid to ask for help. I now understand my rights and where to find support.

Summarized participant feedback

I learned that abuse is not only physical, and I feel more confident supporting others.

Summarized participant feedback

The awareness session helped me recognize emotional and financial abuse. I gained confidence to set healthier boundaries and ask for the respect I deserve.

Summarized participant feedback

For years, I lived with isolation, control and fear. Sharing my story helped me reclaim my voice and reminded me that support and safety are possible.

Summarized participant feedback

These are summaries of participant feedback, not verbatim quotations. Names are withheld to protect participants’ privacy and confidentiality.